Device for use in developing a square putting stroke

ABSTRACT

An attachment for the head of a putter includes a spring clamp attachable to the head of a putter, a pair of arms extending perpendicularly from said clamp and having spaced apart guide surfaces thereon which cooperate with the shaft of a golf club lying on the putting surface beneath the clamp for holding the putter face perpendicular to the axis of said shaft during the entire putting stroke.

United States Patent 1191 i Swanson Oct. 29, 1974 [5 DEVICE FOR USEIN DEVELOPING A 3,286,381 11 1966 Woege 24 675 x SQUARE PUTTING STROKE FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1 1 lnventorr g i g g w fi b gfi g 175,197 2 1922 Great Britain 273 192 ar v gm, [22] Filed: Aug. 30, 1973 Primary ExaminerGeorge J. Mario pp No 392 980 Attorney, Agent, or FirmEdmond T. Patnaude [57] ABSTRACT l. 2 131 11.3 8 .37.? 11 651 25 731 An attachment for the head of a Putter includes [58] Field 61 Search 273/191, 192, 186, 183; SPmg clamp attflchable 3 head Of a Palr 24/67 5 67 3 of arms extendmg perpendicularly from sa1d clamp and having spaced apart guide surfaces thereon which ft of a 01f club 1 in on the [56] References Cited cooPerate Wlth the Sha g Y g g y putting surface beneath the clamp for holding the put- UNITED STATES PATENTS ter face perpendicular to the axis of said shaft during 5,223,335 2/1331 273/192 the entire putting stroke.

2,723,858 11/1955 Chizewski....

7 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures DEVICE FOR USE IN DEVELOPING A SQUARE PUTTING STROKE that path at the time the putter contacts the ball and that the putter head continue along that path for as long as the face of the putter remains in contact with the ball. Moreover, it is important that the face of the putter intersect the desired path of the putt at an angle of ninety degrees as long as the face of the putter remains in contact with the ball. While various putting strokes may be used to direct the ball to the cup, l have found the most effective and consistent stroke is one where the putter face remains perpendicular to the initial direction of the ball in both the rearward and forward portions of the stroke. This is known as a square putting stroke. Since such a stroke is essentially the result of muscle memory, it would be desirable to provide a teaching device or aid to assist a golfer in developing this square putting stroke. Preferably, the golfer should be able to practice with the same putter he uses in actual play so that he will become accustomed to the way it feels during a proper putting stroke. Moreover, such a device should be small and light in weight so that, for example, it can be carried in the pocket of a conventional golf club bag and used for a few minutes during the usual warm-up period before a round of golf. Also, by being small and light in weight such a device would not appreciably increase the weight of the putter during practice.

SUMMARY OF THE lNVENTlON Briefly, there is provided 'in accordance with the present invention a putting aid which is removably attached to the head of a putter and which guidingly engages the shaft of another golf club lying on the putting surface alongthe desired path of the ball. As the putter is moved rearwardly during the backstroke and forwardly during the forward stroke the putter face intersects the desired path at an angle of ninety degrees, and in addition, the putterhead moves only along this same path.

Further objects and advantages and a better understanding of the present invention can be had by reference to the following detailed description, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the device of the present invention in use{ FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the device of the present invention attached to the head of a putter and in use;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of another embodiment of the present invention;

F IG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 in FlG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view of still another embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the device of the present invention in collapsed condition in the package.

DETAILED DESCRlPTlON OF INVENTION Referring now to the drawing and particularly to FIG.

1 thereof, there is shown a putter attachment 10 embodying the presentinvention attached to the head or blade 11 of a putter 12. The device 10 includes a channel shaped spring metal clamp having a flat bottom surface 13 and sidewalls 14 and 15. The upper ends of the walls 14 and 15 are each slotted at 16 and 17 and curled to receive the off-turned ends of a pair of wire guide members 18. The guide members 18 are preferably formed of a relatively stiff wire so that they may be folded downwardly toward one another and pressed together to spread the upper edges of the walls 14 and 15 of the spring clamp for attachment thereof to the putter head. The guide members 18 are about three inches long and have arcuate or U-shaped end portions 19 having an internal diameter of approximately one-half inch. The arcuate surfaces of the end portions 19 provide guides which are adapted to rest on a rod 22 lying on the putting surface 23 in a direction parallel to the desired path of the putt as indicated by the arrow 24 in FIG. 1.

In one embodiment of this invention the guide arms 18 are very loosely connected to the central clamping member so that the end portions thereof fall under the force of gravity onto the rod 22 and remain there even though the putter head may be lifted slightly during the overall putting stroke.

Referring to FIGS. -3 and 4 wherein like numerals are used to designate similar parts, the forwardly and rearwardly extending guide members are designated 18' and the arcuate guide portions 19 thereof are replaced by rollers 27 which are freely rotatable on the intermediate end portions of the guide members 18'. The rollers 27 have a concave peripheral surface 29 which are adapted to roll along the rod 22 during the back and forward portions of the putting stroke.

Referring to FIG. 5 there is shown another embodiment of the invention which may be incorporated in either of the putting'aid devices 10 or 10'. As there shown'it includes a light spring 31 which is attached to the two guide members to lightly bias the ends of the guides downwardly to insure that they remain in contact with the associated club shaft during the entire practice stroke. The spring 31 has a straight, uncoiled central portion 32 which fits against the bottom of the head to minimize the distance that the putter must be elevated above the rod 22.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the device 10 is shown in a folded up condition in a container or case 35. In this condition the guide arms 18 are folded against one another. It may thus be seen that the device 10 is small, particularly when folded into the storage condition as shown in FIG. 6. 3

In use, the device 10 is attached to the head of the putter. lf the user is simply going to practice his putting stroke without using a ball. the device 10 may be attached directly over the sweet spot on the head of the putter. On the other hand, if the user desires to actually putt a ball while using theteaching aid, the device 10 is attached to the head of the putter either near the heel as illustrated in FlG. l or at the toe leaving the sweet spot on the face of the putter open for engagement with the ball. In either case, a straight rod is placed on the putting surface and the guiding ends 19 or27 are positioned on the rod. Accordingly the face of the putter is automatically positioned in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod 22. As the putter head is moved back and forth during the back and forward portions of the putting stroke the putter face is held at all times in a direction square to the desired initial direction of the putt. The face of the putter can, however, be pivoted from the vertical in accordance with the desires of the putter without the ends of the guide arms 18 being removed from the rod 22. In this way an overspin or backspin may be applied to the ball in accordance with the wishes of the user.

Although any rod 22 if sufficiently immobile on the putting surface may be used, I have found that the shaft of another golf club is ideal since the head of that club lying on the putting surface holds the club in a fixed position. An added advantage is that the extra club is ordinarily available at the time the golfer wishes to practice putting.

While the present invention has been described in connection with particular embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, the illustrated device is for use with a blade type putter but other means for attaching the guide arms to mallet head or other style putters may be provided in accordance with the present invention. Therefore, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications which come within the true spirit and scope of this invention.

What I claim is: 1. Apparatus for use in developing a square putting stroke comprising clamp means attached to the head of a putter, first and second arms mounted to said clamp means for pivotable movement in a common vertical plane and respectively extending perpendicular to the face of said putter,

one of said arms extending in a direction rearwardly of said head and the other of said arms extending in a direction forewardly of said head,

a straight rod of circular cross-section resting on a support surface beneath said clamp, and

a pair of guide means respectively disposed on said arms in proximity to the ends thereof and each having a U-shaped cross-section resting on and partially receiving said rod and movable therealong while maintaining said head at right angles to said rod,

whereby said putter face is maintained perpendicular to said rod as said putter head is stroked back and forth.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 comprising resilient means biasing said ends of said arms toward a location below the sole of said putter head.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said resilient means is a tension spring connected between said arms.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said arms are each formed of wire bent at the ends of said arms in the shape of an inverted U to provide said U-shaped cross-section.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said guide means comprise rollers each having a concave peripheral surface providing said U-shaped cross-section receiving said rod.

6. A device according to claim 1 wherein said rod is the shaft of a golf club.

7. device according to claim 6 wherein said clamp means comprises a U-shaped member formed of a spring material for fitting over the bottom of the head ofaputter. 

1. Apparatus for use in developing a square putting stroke comprising clamp means attached to the head of a putter, first and second arms mounted to said clamp means for pivotable movement in a common vertical plane and respectively extending perpendicular to the face of said putter, one of said arms extending in a direction rearwardly of said head and the other of said arms extending in a direction forewardly of said head, a straight rod of circular cross-section resting on a support surface beneath said clamp, and a pair of guide means respectively disposed on said arms in proximity to the ends thereof and each having a U-shaped crosssection resting on and partially receiving said rod and movable therealong while maintaining said head at right angles to said rod, whereby said putter face is maintained perpendicular to said rod as said putter head is stroked back and forth.
 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 comprising resilient means biasing said ends of said arms toward a location below the sole of said putter head.
 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said resilient means is a tension spring connected between said arms.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said arms are each formed of wire bent at the ends of said arms in the shape of an inverted U to provide said U-shaped cross-section.
 5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said guide means comprise rollers each having a concave peripheral surface providing said U-shaped cross-section receiving said rod.
 6. A device according to claim 1 wherein said rod is the shaft of a golf club.
 7. device according to claim 6 wherein said clamp means comprises a U-shaped member formed of a spring material for fitting over the bottom of the head of a putter. 